Law enforcement agencies in the United States have used excessive force and wielded crowd-control weapons in dangerous ways against demonstrators protesting the dramatic escalation in immigration enforcement. To document that misuse systematically, and give the public, government officials, and oversight bodies the information they need to prevent further abuses, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) and […]
Lawyers for Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya say the Palestinian physician is facing grave illness and abuse inside Israel detention. Dr. Nahreen Ahmed traveled to Gaza and worked alongside Dr. Abu Safiya in Gaza. She was moved by his unwavering dedication to his patients as director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital. “He was able to find […]
July 9, 2026
Attacks on Health Care, Persecution of Health Workers
Drawing on four decades of research on the health and human rights harms of CCWs, a team of PHR experts have documented injuries from these weapons and identified the prominent role certain lesser-known CCWs have played in policing U.S. protests throughout 2025 and 2026.
Starting on January 13, 2026, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) began to hold public hearings on the case of genocide brought against Myanmar by The Gambia. Following clearance operations in Northern Rakhine state in Myanmar in August 2017, PHR worked with partners to use a variety of methodologically rigorous approaches to document forensic medical […]
Webinar: The Ripple Effects of Abortion Bans Across Medical Specialties Moderated by Alice Miranda Ollstein, senior health care reporter for POLITICO. Panelists: Recorded on September 30, 2025. Explore PHR’s new research documenting how abortion bans are limiting clinicians’ ability to provide care across a wide range of specialties in the United States.
At every point in their effort to provide care in Gaza, volunteer health care professionals face systematic practices and policies that directly impact their ability to prevent suffering and loss.
Salim S. Abdool Karim, MD, PhD, FRS, director of the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) and PHR Advisory Council member, reflects on the wide-ranging consequences of cuts to U.S. aid by the Trump administration. As an expert in clinical diseases epidemiology, Dr. Abdool Karim warns of both the unmistakable […]
In an episode airing in March 2025, “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” called for an end to the use of “excited delirium” as a cause of deaths in police custody. The segment cites PHR’s landmark 2022 report “Excited Delirium and Deaths in Police Custody,” which shows how the term is not a valid, independent […]
In an episode airing in March 2025, “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” shined a light on U.S. immigration detention and how it jeopardizes the health, rights, and lives of people who are detained. The harrowing segment highlights two studies published in 2024 by PHR and partners: PHR continues to call for safe, humane, and […]
In armed conflicts around the world, sexual violence is perpetrated at an alarming rate – including against children. Multiple challenges limit evidence collection, preventing accountability for sexual violence. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Physicians for Human Rights and our partners are supporting child survivors of sexual violence through the creation of child-friendly spaces. […]
